Chapter 127: New Ore Vein, Companion Ore!

If he hadn’t obtained this Flying Sword and learned the Sword Control Technique, Chen Mo probably would never have crossed paths again with that guy who was full of hot air, yet somehow impossible to see through.

By the time he returned home, it was barely noon.

Chen Mo cooked himself a meal and enjoyed a hearty feast. Although the food at the Fragrance Pavilion was quite expensive, both the ingredients and the flavors left something to be desired. Even if he spent a whole Spirit Stone on a banquet there, it still wouldn’t taste as good as the vegetables he grew himself!

Two days later.

A crisp KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK rang out from the door.

Chen Mo got up to open it, revealing none other than Mei Hua, the number one Chief Steward who always followed Song Yunxi.

“Is Brother Song looking for me?”

“Yes! I think it’s about the ores!”

“Ores?”

Chen Mo remembered that the Pavilion Master had promised to keep an eye out for the Companion Ores needed for the Seven Miles Killing Array last year. However, almost a year had passed without any news, so he assumed the matter had been forgotten.

“Fellow Daoist Chen, come with me!” Mei Hua turned to leave.

“Wait!”

“Fellow Daoist Chen, is there something else?”

Chen Mo smiled and shook his head. With a light flick of his finger, the Yun Qing Sword shot into the sky, and in the next moment, he hopped onto it.

Beside him, Mei Hua’s eyes widened. He stared in disbelief at Chen Mo, who was only at the Qi Refining Fourth Layer, and found himself momentarily speechless.

“Fellow… Fellow Daoist Chen, you can use Sword Flight now?”

“Haha! It’s not that difficult.”

As he spoke, he reached out and pulled Mei Hua up. Once the steward steadied himself, the Flying Sword beneath their feet pierced through the sky like a rainbow, heading straight for the White Snake Marketplace.

“That’s… that’s truly wonderful.”

“Brother Song is a good man. If you keep following him, I believe it won’t be long before you have your own Flying Sword too!”

Hearing this, Mei Hua’s eyes lit up. “Really?”

“Of course.”

In just the time it took to exchange those few words, the two arrived at the White Snake Marketplace.

Song Yunxi had just finished seeing off a guest at the entrance when he spotted them arriving on a Flying Sword.

Once the blade landed, the straightforward Pavilion Master stepped forward, threw an arm around Chen Mo’s shoulders, and said, “Not bad, my friend! It hasn’t been long, and you’ve already mastered Sword Flight!”

“Hasn’t been long? It’s already been a year!”

“A year already? Time really does fly!” Song Yunxi sighed in amazement.

“A year is just a little over three hundred days. How could it not be fast?”

“True.”

“You were looking for me, Brother Song?”

“Ah, right! Come, I’m taking you somewhere!” Song Yunxi raised an eyebrow, his tone laced with excitement.

“The Fragrance Pavilion?”

Hearing this, Song Yunxi feigned anger. “Bah! Am I that kind of person? Do you think I only have the Fragrance Pavilion on my mind?”

Chen Mo simply replied with a smile.

“Let’s go, let’s go. We can talk about the Fragrance Pavilion when we get back. I’m telling you, we are incredibly lucky.” Song Yunxi summoned his Flying Sword and continued, “Did you know? An Ore Vein was discovered between Purple Cloud Peak and Red Cloud Peak, and it’s produced quite a few Spiritual Ores. Come on, I’ll take you there to see if they have the Companion Ores you need!”

“An Ore Vein?” Chen Mo raised an eyebrow, his interest instantly piqued.

He had been hearing the term “Ore Vein” ever since he began his Cultivation, but he had never had the chance to see one. He also knew that Spiritual Sand and Spirit Stones didn’t just grow out of thin air. Where else did the Spirit Stones consumed by the tens of thousands of Cultivators on Purple Cloud Peak come from?

They could only be painstakingly excavated by the Miners in the Black Mine Pits, piece by piece!

If an Ore Vein had truly emerged, the days ahead for Purple Cloud Peak and Red Cloud Peak were about to get a lot better.

“I originally wanted to ride together, but since you can already use Sword Flight, I’ll test you today and see if you can keep up!”

Struck by a sudden surge of playfulness, Song Yunxi darted away on his Long Sword before he even finished speaking.

Chen Mo cupped his fists toward Mei Hua, then engaged his Sword Control and chased after him.

The Pavilion Master was incredibly fast. Chen Mo only managed to catch a glimpse of his back at the very beginning. The gap between them widened further and further, and in less than fifty breaths, Song Yunxi had completely vanished from sight.

After a few minutes, Song Yunxi circled back. Amidst the howling wind, he gathered his breath and shouted loudly, “You’re too slow! You still need more practice!”

Chen Mo rolled his eyes in response, remaining silent.

Song Yunxi let out a hearty laugh and stopped rushing ahead on his own.

They flew for over an hour. Even with his practice of the Huai Mountain Qi Cultivation Technique, the Spiritual Qi in Chen Mo’s body began showing signs of depletion.

But fortunately, they had arrived! As Song Yunxi dived downward, a golden mountain peak appeared before the two of them.

The mountain was covered in ancient paulownia trees with golden leaves. With autumn approaching, the sprawling golden foliage was breathtakingly beautiful.

Below, a group of Loose Cultivators clad in coarse cyan tunics hurried in and out of the cave entrance. Outside, a dozen or so Cultivators stood with long whips in hand, glaring fiercely at the Miners. They forced the workers to use their Mining Pickaxes to chip away at the rubble within the rocks, bit by bit.

Further away stood a stone pavilion. Another group of luxuriously dressed Cultivators sat inside around a stone table, drinking wine and chatting merrily, seemingly completely unconcerned with the progress at the mine pit.

CRACK!

A long whip lashed viciously against a Miner’s body, instantly tearing through his already thin tunic and leaving his back a bloody, mangled mess.

This strike nearly scattered what little Spiritual Qi he had left.

Yet, even so, the “punished” Miner merely flinched before expressionlessly continuing to strike the rock in front of him with his Mining Pickaxe. They had long since grown numb. Whether they lived or died held absolutely no meaning to them anymore.

Ever since they were sold to the mine pits and became Miners, their entire existence was reduced to moving from one Ore Vein to another. And because they were Cultivators, they weren’t even allowed the luxury of food or rest!

Song Yunxi turned a blind eye to all of this. Although Chen Mo felt a twinge of pity, he wasn’t exactly a bleeding-heart saint.

Everyone had their own fate. He might be able to save one, but he couldn’t save them all. Moreover, he himself was just a Spirit Plant Cultivator at the Qi Refining Fourth Layer!

After the two landed, Song Yunxi told Chen Mo to wait while he jogged over to the stone pavilion. It was unclear what he said, but from afar, he could be seen nodding continuously before finally returning.

“Let’s go over there. They just dug up some Companion Ores. We can sift through them and see if there are any you need.” Song Yunxi pointed to a pile of rocks not far from the mine pit. Standing next to the pile was a resolute-looking Cultivator who clearly went by the book.

The two approached him proactively and asked, “Fellow Daoist, I’ve already spoken with Elder Sun. Could you show us what Companion Ores have been excavated from this Ore Vein so we can take our pick?”

Ling Qionglin raised an eyebrow and glanced toward the pavilion. Seeing someone in the distance nod at him, he finally spoke, “We have some, but you know the rules, right?”

“I know! Of course I know!” Song Yunxi hurriedly replied. Seeing no reaction from Chen Mo, he quickly added, “He knows too.”

Ling Qionglin gave a slight nod and unrolled a white blanket on the ground. Then, with a gentle wave of his hand, a massive pile of Companion Ores materialized right in front of Chen Mo!